Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Barbara McRae, who is the former editor of The Franklin Press
newspaper in Franklin, NC designed the cover for When All God’s Children Get Together: A Celebration of the Lives and
Music of African-American People in Far Western North Carolina. She also
wrote the following words:

“This monumental work reveals the powerful story of a people
who have been largely invisible in their own homeland. With extraordinary
images and gripping narratives, Ann Miller Woodford opens a door to the homes,
churches, and daily lives of the African-American people of far Western North
Carolina. She unflinchingly captures the horrors imposed under Jim Crow, but
also the kindness and decency of the mountain people, who offered friendship
and a helping hand to their Black neighbors. You can almost hear the music… you
can feel the pain, the heartbreak, the striving. Like any great drama, All God’s Children deals with obstacles
and tragedy. But, ultimately, obstacles are overcome, and tragic circumstances
yield to the indomitable human spirit. Historians and genealogists will
treasure this book, but so will all who love humanity, America, the Southern Appalachians…
and a great tale, told with grace and total honesty.

“Ann Miller Woodford grew up in the small mountain town of
Andrews, North Carolina, during the days of segregation. He seized
opportunities available to her for education and work, moved away, and built an
exciting career in business and the arts. Eventually, she returned to her
hometown and became a proud booster of Andrews and the region. Artist, author,
businesswoman, and activist, she became an agent for change as the founder of 1
Dozen Who Care Inc., a nonprofit that works to create leadership capacity and
build community unity in far Western North Carolina. ODWC has partnered with
Ann to produce When All God’s Children
Get Together and other initiatives inspired by the history and heritage of
regional African-Americans. Learn more about those projects in this book.”

Thank you all for your patience and kindness as I have worked on this book for over seven years. I am so grateful that God has blessed me and Barbara as we have struggled together to make a dream come true.

Sunday, January 4, 2015

Introducing the author, Ann Miller Woodford

Ann Miller Woodford was born and raised in
Andrews, North Carolina. She attended the one-room, one-teacher, Andrews Colored/Negro
Elementary School through 8th grade. Due to segregation in Andrews, she
enrolled in a girls boarding school, Allen
High School in Asheville, North Carolina. There she was a member of the
National Honor Society and graduated with honors in 1965. Ann graduated cum laude in 1969,
with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio where she
was a member of Mortar Board honor society.She is currently working on a Master of Arts Degree from Western
Carolina University in Cullowhee, North
Carolina and working for an AA Degree in Business from Tri-County Community College in Murphy, North Carolina. She was
the first African American to work in an office and the first to teach (art) in
the Cherokee County Schools. Her home church is Mt. Zion Baptist Church in
Andrews where she serves as Sunday School Treasurer and Youth Director.

Ann is the Founder of One Dozen Who Care, Inc. (ODWC). The African-American, women-led 501(c)3
community development corporation (CDC) has a vision to create leadership capacity and build
community unity in far western North Carolina through training, supporting
community, collaborating with other community groups, and organizing economic
development, social, cultural and educational activities. For 12 years, Ann was Executive Director of
ODWC, the first of its kind in far western North Carolina. She is also the Founder of Chautauqua
AVE! (Andrews Valley Experience!), a festival held
each spring and fall in Andrews that features local and national speakers. Before
founding ODWC, while serving as Executive Director at the Andrews Chamber of Commerce, Ann was honored with
the Rural Leader of the Year Award from the North Carolina Rural Economic Development
Center in Raleigh. In 2008, she received the honor of the Z. Smith Reynolds
Sabbatical and the coveted ODWC Emma Cline Moore Award for Community Service.

She is a professional fine artist who has
traveled extensively. As an artist/designer, she has created works of art and crafts that
have been marketed locally, nationally, and internationally. In the 1980s she
partnered with the actress, Esther Rolle who played
"Florida Evans" on the TV
series "Good Times. Their
company, E & A Global Enterprises in Los Angeles, California marketed Ann’s
artworks, Annie and Charlie Ragg® dolls and African American Heritage playing
cards.

Ann credits her high school English
teacher, Betty Sue Smith with her writing ability. This book comes from her
desire to record the lives of the African American people who labored under very difficult
conditions to make it possible for her and so many more to have enjoyed
all the unique and exciting experiences of life.

This blog is intended to help Ann gather more information about the very special people who blazed a trail for those who followed them as they founded churches and built communities in far western North Carolina.

Saturday, January 3, 2015

HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!I am new to this blogging thing. It will be fun to read your comments, but I will not be able to respond to all of them. If you have any significant historical information about western North Carolina African Americans, that will be great for my readers and maybe for a follow-up book.Thank you very much!Ann

About Me

I have one living sister, Nina Karen Miller Moses who lives in California with her daughter, Nikisha Ann Moses. My younger sister Mary Alice Miller Worthy passed away in 1991. Her son Seane Worthy and his wife, Amanda Adcock Worthy, live in South Carolina with their daughter, Mary Addison - called "Addie" and their son, Miller.

I am the Founder and former Executive Director (12 years) of a non-profit Community Development Corporation (CDC) called One Dozen Who Care, Inc. (ODWC).

For seven years, I have researched, photographed and written about the Black history in my mountain region for a book called,
When All God's Children Get Together: A Celebration of the Lives and Music of African American People in Far Western North Carolina. This book is created as part of an ODWC program that started in 1998. After the book is published, we plan to develop a film and CD of our Gospel and spiritual singing.

This project is intended to tear down walls that divide people in our region and build up relationships between the race groups, religions and youth with our elders.